Volume 6 - 2022 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2022.1046549 are increasingly feeling the effects of climate change due to factors such as drought with severe consequences for food security and food sovereignty decades of rural mismanagement have left countless of these farming territories severely depressed as well as at the mercy of competition for their natural resources This paper presents and discusses the results of a Participatory Rural Appraisal conducted in the region of Odemira Rooted in the frameworks of agroecology and food democracy this mixed methodology aims to support people in multiply stressed agro-territories to diagnose the state of their food systems and agroecosystems from a democratic and ecological point of view and engage local actors in imagining fairer and healthier food futures for their regions Local food actors were invited to identify and qualify the main problems in the region's food systems complemented by an agroecological assessment of farm production systems The results of the study confirm the status of Odemira as a depressed and contested agro-territory and ecological vulnerability is being compounded by the clash between the model of traditional smallholder farming and that of large-scale intensive agriculture The study also shows the potential of sustainable farming practices as well as collaboration between the different food actors to support an agroecological transition in the region to jointly realise food democracy and food system sustainability the tensions resulting from the current political support for hyper-industrialisation and the lack of democratic and legal mechanisms available to local actors will need to be addressed head-on Climate change is considered one of the biggest challenges worldwide, and the reshaping of the world's climatic patterns has already resulted in changing ecological systems. Recent trends indicate that global greenhouse gas emissions have tripled compared to pre-industrial levels, reaching over 1,900 parts per billion (Tollefson, 2022) climate change has affected the environment and ecosystems in many ways: from increasing temperatures decreasing water availability and food security levels worldwide to expanding land desertification the EU recognises that food systems are as much a major contributor to climate change as they have the potential to reverse these fundamental problems who indicates that in the wider Alentejo region six foreign companies now own more than 65% of the olive plantations prioritising holistic and participatory approaches building on local farmers' knowledge and priorities to promote the sustainable and viable use of local renewable resources defending smallholder peasant and family farmers and their communities and local food systems politicised view of the global industrial food system and cultural challenges through the involvement of all those affected Food sovereignty embraces both food democracy and agroecology to empower communities and producers and facilitate the joint sustainable and democratic transformation of food systems The theoretical framework for this study is thus focused on realising the right of every person to nourishing as well as on underlining the pivotal role that small-scale and peasant farmers have in terms of ensuring both food justice and local sustainability to assess the sustainability as well as the level of democracy of Odemira's food and farming systems With the involvement of a diversity of actors from the region's food and farming systems using a methodology combining documentary and participatory diagnostic tools this study aimed to answer the following research questions: • What are the key challenges that can be identified for the Odemira agro-territory • What ecological and democratic tensions and convergences can be observed in the food system • What are the main contributing factors to the agro-territory's key stressors as perceived by its principal local actors This paper is structured as follows: the present section provides the backdrop and justification for our research some concluding remarks and suggestions for ways forward are offered in Section 5 It offers a toolkit of methods to collect and process data on-site It is particularly appropriate for communities suffering multiple stressors because it is more responsive to their plight and perceptions and more capable of eliciting reflexive data and uncovering the key factors that fuel the region's problems Chambers points out that rather than extracting information solely for planning processes beyond the community‘s needs PRA can be characterised by the experiential training and collaborative learning that it can offer as well as the empowerment of local people to take local action For the present analysis, this research took to heart Verdejo (2006 “to support community self-determination through participation and The actors identified during the first research phase (see Section 2.1) were contacted and informed of our intentions in order to involve them as much as possible in the research design process thus ensuring the inclusion of essential information for the baseline analysis and allowing them to comment on the research objectives and methods and offer suggestions these local actors were kept abreast of developments and ultimately invited to participate in the collective appraisal of Odemira as an agro-territory The research design triangulates three sources of data: Baseline analysis of the agro-territory based on documentary research including establishing a list of main actors in food and farming in the region; Agroecological sustainability assessments at 16 farms drawn from four typologies; Collective analysis and reflection with local actors to test and complete the baseline analysis as well as identify and analyse the key ecological and democratic challenges and tensions in the agro-territory each of the methods used in the study is presented A total of 87 actors were identified from the documentary research complemented with a snowball approach by contacting known actors and asking for referrals For the agro-territory of Odemira, 32 producers were identified through the process described above, of which 16 were chosen across the four typologies for producers presented in Table 1 (conventional Six additional criteria determined which producers were contacted: location (coastal vs Due to the lack of certified organic producers in the area the typologies of organic and agroecological producers were combined into a proto-agroecological typology The producers' systems and practices assessments were conducted on-site using a closed-ended questionnaire which covered 36 indices of agroecological sustainability This was complemented by a walk around the farm to observe the agricultural practices Assessments typically lasted an hour to an hour and a half the scores on the different criteria were shared with the farmer to benefit their awareness of their activities The questionnaire used forms part of the Tool for Agroecology Performance Evaluation (TAPE) collaboratively designed by 70 organisations across the globe active in agroecology under the coordination of FAO The motivation for its development stemmed from the opportunity presented by the science and practices of agroecology to create more sustainable resilient and fair farming and food systems TAPE builds on frameworks for sustainability evaluation that already exist to be as relevant and applicable as possible to different scales Another requirement was that it should be simple in use minimising data collection but allowing extendibility […] to produce consolidated evidence on the extent and intensity of the use of agroecological practices and the performance of agroecological systems across five dimensions of sustainability: (i) environment The 16 farms were evaluated based on their performance on the 10 criteria and 36 indices from the TAPE tool Each farm's single and average score on the 10 criteria was projected as an individual outcome and the scores of all farms on each of the 36 indices that make up the 10 criteria were projected as collective results Out of the 87 food system actors contacted in the study 20 were selected for a workshop based on their technical as well as their connection to the agro-territory and willingness/reachability to participate All participants were contacted via email and telephone and represented individual producers associations/NGOs active in the local food systems The workshop was conceived to collectively analyse the main characteristics and critical problems of Odemira as an agro-territory the following techniques from the PRA toolkit were used: • Collective agrarian memory exercise; and threats) analysis of Odemira's food and farming system(s); • Problem identification and prioritisation regarding Odemira's food system(s); • Problem tree exercise—analysing causes and consequences of critical problems; • Free flow reflection exercise in the final plenary The workshop was complemented by four short semi-structured interviews with additional important local actors using the same questions as in the workshop The interviewees were: local government (two) The municipality of Odemira (see Figure 1) is located in the south of Portugal It is part of the district of Beja and a sub-region of Alentejo's coastal area With a territorial extension of 1,720.6 km2 and a 55 km coastline Odemira is Portugal's largest county It shares territory with the ecological reserve Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina and the Natura 2000 network Odemira's landscape varies from a plateau topography on the coast to hills where streams interconnect to flow into the rivers Mira and Sado and Between the plateau and the hill region there is a transition zone where the main villages of the municipality are concentrated Figure 1. Map of Odemira. Source: Município de Odemira (2016) The region also offers unique habitats (including temporary freshwater ponds) which provide vital ecological functions for the local fauna and flora for the white storks and other endemic species nesting on the sea cliffs of the coastal strip The town of Odemira, as the county seat, takes on a particular centrality in the territory: this is where the primary public and commercial services, light industry, and business parks are located (Palhinhas, 2019). The most remote interior part of the municipality can be characterised by forestry, cork extraction, and extensive livestock pastures (Palhinhas, 2019) The Mira irrigation system supplies the water needed for these agricultural holdings. The Alentejo is the region with the largest irrigated area (38% of the total area) and the one that registered the most significant expansion—a 54% increase compared to 2009 (INE, 2019 mainly in the form of water rationing but also by cutting off access to water for some small-scale farmers to plastic pollution derived from the “plastification” of the landscape with the expansion of greenhouses for cash crops The general public is becoming increasingly outraged and in 2020 a public petition with 6,000 signatures was delivered to Parliament criticising regional and national governments for not only consistently failing to address serious issues and violations recorded in official reports but also for allowing the area of plastic greenhouses to triple while ignoring essential infrastructures The rapid increase in migrant agricultural workers has caused upward pressure on rents and downward pressure on the availability of living and commercial spaces alongside the depletion of local fauna and flora due to rural mismanagement and climate change created a territory that can be characterised as “depressed and contested” suffering from structural ecological and socio-economic challenges as well as democratic deficits and blatant injustices Table 2 provides a detailed description of the 16 assessed farms based on nine indicators: typology, region, gender, productive system, crop types, workers (including family), farm size including land distribution, production destination, and legal status. Table 3 shows the farms' agroecological transition/sustainability scores using the TAPE assessment tool the sample will be described according to the indicators and then the overall sustainability scores are discussed the indicators that best distinguished respondents and impacted their scores on the TAPE questionnaire were location the size and land distribution of the farm Description of assessed farms in the Odemira region Overall percentage results of the characterisation of agroecological transition (CAET) for the 16 farms the majority of farmers were traditional (9) followed by proto-agroecological farmers (5) and finally This indicator differentiated most strongly between farms and is therefore discussed in detail when the overall sustainability scores of the farms are presented Most farmers interviewed were located in the interior region (8) followed by the transitional region (5) and finally Farm location tended to significantly influence the different dimensions of sustainability of the farms for the following reasons: The coastal area represents a hotspot for multinational and local companies that produce mainly for export due to good farming conditions (e.g. easily workable soils with abundant water and suitable climatic conditions without frost during the winter) The intermediary/transition zone is a stretch of land in the municipality which divides the interior from the littoral and is mainly characterised by important villages in terms of population and services This transition zone has no access to centralised irrigation or major markets but having the largest population share it offers an opportunity for direct sale to small-scale producers The interior zone is situated east of the intermediary area and is the most desertified in terms of population Even though the largest water reservoir is located nearby the centralised irrigation system extends only to some portions of this area The area is dominated by traditional farmers and characterised by an ageing population with very little or no access to infrastructure to support the output of products The gender spread mainly favoured male producers (as expected in a region with many traditional farmers) five of the sixteen holdings were either managed or co-managed by women Regarding the type of productive system and crops a significant impact of the farms' production choices on their sustainability performances could be found Most farmers either engaged in fruit and/or vegetable production systems agro-pastoral and agro-silvo-pastoral systems Agroforestry and arable systems each had just one representative 10 farmers possessed permanent pastures; therefore even those specialising in the production of fruits and/or vegetables decided to incorporate animals into their operations an important contribute to on-farm resources which is frequently considered a crucial component of self-sufficiency a sizable industrial holding in the littoral and a proto-agroecological farmer in the transitional zone the land set aside by farmers for natural vegetation was frequently residual The overall amount of natural vegetation was seven times smaller than the total amount for agricultural production and five times smaller than the total amount of permanent pastures even though most farmers had timber and non-timber trees on their lands This phenomenon occurs due to the common practice of renting land from large landowners without the legal authority to use the trees for commercial purposes The vast majority of the farms (14) hired between one and four workers with only two employing 20 or more agricultural workers five farms operated on more than 100 hectares; six farms occupied between 30 and 100 hectares; two farms covered <5 ha while the smallest three were just under one hectare The farms with better overall sustainability scores were the smallest (below 1 ha) and intermediate-sized (between 20 and 100 ha) these included all the proto-agroecological farms those farms that reserved the most significant area for natural vegetation and/or practised very extensive farming were among the farms with the best overall sustainability scores The production destination we encountered was predominantly sale combined with self-consumption for all farms although three farmers produced chiefly for subsistence purposes exported their goods and/or sold them at a national level This is because the market for the dominant product in the area is controlled by a limited number of intermediaries who export live animals This is different for traditional horticultural and fruit producers who have less or no access to national markets which is often the women's responsibility in the case of the smallest farmers proto-agroecological farmers tend to concentrate on horticulture and depend on local markets to sell their produce strived to keep a part of their harvest for self-consumption most traditional farmers were individual producers Proto-agroecological farmers operated in more unusual legal formats: two were unregistered Next, the results of the 16 farms on the score for the characterisation of agroecological transition (CAET), as shown in Table 3 While none of the farms received scores higher than 70% in this study the farms designated as proto-agroecological received better marks with the best of these farms obtaining a score of 68% This is a compelling case for changing production methods to an agroecological or proto-agroecological approach since agroecological practices encourage interventions at all levels of the food and farming system two traditional farmers in the interior received extremely high marks The latter is the highest-scoring farm (a father and son duo) operating in an agro-silvo-pastoral system that combines sizable regions for crop production with sizable areas for extensive pasturing This combination favours healthier soils (fertilised by animals) which increase productivity and quality of livelihood in the sense that these farmers could achieve a very good diet by combining the fruits of their production with products bought with their revenue This study anticipated lower results from farmers in the interior region Odemira county's interior was home to four of the top seven scorers This demonstrates that sound agricultural practices particularly the closing of production cycles independent of the farms' starting circumstances The lowest-scoring farmer (Q15 with 39%) was a struggling traditional farmer located in the littoral This farmer had great difficulty anticipating demand and suffered from the competition of large agribusinesses in the area The soil on his farm was severely degraded and even though he was aware of good practices this farmer had no possibility of implementing them as he was working alone He often applied industrial-style practices further degrading his soil and increasing his water demand Like another low scorer in the interior region (Q12 with 46%) this farmer's land lacked tree cover and the presence of timber or non-timber trees Both farmers also practised poor crop rotation and failed to integrate animals in their crop production satisfactorily: neither feeding them from the farm nor sufficiently using their manure The remaining farms presented an intermediate score (between 50 and 59%) They were almost equally distributed between the coastal area Two were large conventional farmers/ companies while the remainder were traditional farmers Even though the two conventional farmers failed to improve their sustainability on all dimensions beyond the satisfactory level the traditional farmers maintained average scores despite their vulnerabilities and limitations These findings highlight the significance of selecting sound and regenerative agricultural knowledge and practices independent of farming Table 4 presents the cumulative score of all the assessed farms on the 36 TAPE indices The maximum cumulative score that could be obtained on each index was 4 (highest score) * 16 (number of farms) or 64 points Cumulative score of the 16 assessed farms on the 36 TAPE indices (max score = 64) We find evidence of vulnerability for all assessed farms in several vital indices farms demonstrated deficient integration of crops with livestock or aquaculture which increased their dependence on external factors they usually had no more than one or two species and small numbers of animals while animal welfare was not always guaranteed The fact that farms were failing to diversify their activities and services adequately denotes a tendency towards specialisation (rather than polyculture) and a general lack of knowledge or interest in complementary activities Investment in renewable energy was practically non-existent beyond using firewood for heating Farmers' overall very low adhesion to producer organisations and associations was equally worrying This is not necessarily by choice; several farmers indicated their desire to join an organisation but could not find any in their area very few producers had access to formal or informal platforms for the horizontal creation and transfer of knowledge and good practices the lack of opportunities and decent work for young people in farming contributes to their abandoning the activity of their parents and grandparents with subsequent abandonment of farmland and high levels of youth emigration The Odemira food systems revealed other vulnerabilities that can be considered on the low end of transition (i.e. closer to 40% of the maximum score than 60%) Key among these are the insufficient direct connection to consumers and significant dependence on intermediaries farmers and their families greatly depend on products sourced outside their communities Related to these lacunae is the absence of mutual support between producers partly caused by the region's isolation farmers revealed a low capacity to adapt to climate and environmental change All of them were affected to some extent by climate change particularly the significant loss of water resources that occurred in the year this paper was written Most traditional and proto-agroecological farmers do not have ready access to credit lines and insurance which are essential mitigating factors for climate and economic stress Traditional farmers were all found to be operating at the limit of their ability to sustain themselves economically and ecologically Many of the farmers had seen their annual returns decrease despite maintaining their level of production due to the current economic climate where input factors are becoming drastically more expensive this is not accompanied by higher prices for producers farmers showed several strengths as well as potential the people interviewed: reasonably integrated agricultural production with trees; self-produced a good part of the seeds they used and bought most of the animals locally; managed to market all or part of their products locally (in the case of traditional horticultural and fruit growing farmers); had reasonable access to or mastery of agroecological knowledge and were somewhat interested in agroecology; remained connected to their local communities and identified with traditional local culture; showed a good diversity of crops and trees and other perennials; and applied good practices such as mulching and crop rotations to preserve soils most farmers had good knowledge of alternative practices to avoid the application of synthetic products The majority recycled at least some of the biomass produced on their farm as well as other wastes No hunger was observed among the people interviewed in the municipality of Odemira: all had access to diverse and nutritious food and were able to meet most of their food needs with their production Farmers also sought out different ways of saving and conserving water although they generally considered that the work was hard they were satisfied with their working conditions and felt entitled to make their own decisions women were involved in or shared decision-making in practically all production systems although they did not necessarily consider that these were respected The TAPE evaluation results were plotted against the farms' descriptive attributes: typology, geographical location, gender, farming system, and legal status. Geographical location and typology showed a significant difference in scores between farmers and were thus further explored. Figure 2 plots the TAPE results on the 10 criteria according to geographical location The farmers in the littoral zone showed a high degree of transition in only two sustainability categories—Responsible Governance and Resilience—which can be attributed to their larger size and their better integration in producers' organisations and associations these producers are empowered and have control over their human and political rights due to their capacity and means to develop their livelihoods and request assistance to access markets or political institutions most of these producers have a stable income a greater capacity to recover after any disturbance They also receive most of the national/European subsidies and tax benefits the littoral farms scored lower than those in the other regions in most categories: Synergies (lack of integration of animals and/or trees in their crop production) Circular and Solidarity Economy (no connection with consumers) Efficiency and Recycling (little or no interconnection between elements in the production system) Human and Social Values (significant social and economic gap between landowners and agricultural workers the former controlling the labour relationship and conditions) and Culture and Food Tradition (feel less connected to the community and local cultural and food traditions) Results of TAPE—Step 1 according to geographical area While Figure 2 shows that farmers in the interior and intermediary zones had scores that were close intermediary zone farmers may have a modest advantage because they have better access to infrastructure and markets as well as a more organised engagement with their communities Farmers in the interior—a region that is becoming more and more arid—typically have more ageing and isolation issues isolation has been shown to encourage the production of farm inputs (such as natural fertilisers) and the choice of a wider variety of plants these farms frequently employ more resource-saving practices This once again demonstrates that sustainability is possible despite the challenging circumstances on some farms even though socioeconomic and democratic mechanisms (e.g. inclusion) are required to combat marginalisation Figure 3 displays the TAPE results by farm typology (traditional, proto-agroecological, and conventional). These results largely support the discussion regarding Figure 2: conventional export-oriented producers (located in the littoral) have the means and resources to mobilise networks and manage labour relations and conditions while they can mitigate the effects of climate change with access to capital their weaker score overall can be related to their choice of intensive industrialised agriculture Results of TAPE—Step 1 according to farm typology It is also evident that traditional farmers in Odemira frequently have more unstable land ownership suffer from worse working conditions than other typologies these traditional farmers are politically the most marginalised and susceptible to precariousness with little capacity to improve their situation Figure 3 additionally confirms that the proto-agroecological farms dominate the ratings They display the strongest sustainability score of all surveyed farms in seven out of 10 categories despite being slightly less resilient and less in control of land and resource governance than conventional farmers the better integration of animals in the production system and a better choice of crop diversity this type of production is the most consistent and promising in achieving a successful transition towards sustainable ecological farm systems Finally, it is also apparent from Figure 3 that conventional/ industrial farmers show the least consistency in their scores While strong on Responsible Governance and Resilience with low scores as well on Diversity and Recycling The results of this evaluation were consistent with what Mottet et al. (2020 7) predict: high scores across all 10 elements are necessary to achieve sustainability/agroecological transition in a specific system it is possible to postulate that Odemira's food systems show good potential for becoming agroecologically sustainable food systems with proto-agroecological systems taking the lead a number of conditions and mechanisms need to be in place for these farms to thrive The conditions refer mostly to the protection of and access to essential resources and the putting in place of infrastructures to support the local food systems The mechanisms needed are mostly democratic in nature: the organisation of producers in networks and associations; the promotion of knowledge-sharing; the establishment of a closer connection between local producers and local consumers; and improvement of working opportunities and conditions in farming focused on the identification of (i) the agro-territory's strengths opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis); (ii) the primary problems affecting Odemira's food and farming systems; (iii) the analysis of the root causes and effects of the top three problems The strengths put forward by participants and interviewees related primarily to the existence of a more traditional/ organic type of production and the persistence of a traditional and peasant identity of which traditional seed saving and participation in cultural events were good indicators participants added the advantages of a vast territory with favourable morphogenetic characteristics and the development of new diversity with the arrival of immigrants The latter phenomenon acts as a cultural “melting pot” that is leading to new including new cooperatives and different ways of engaging with diverse rural realities Turning to the agro-territory's weaknesses participants and interviewees highlighted the effects of the recent rapid development of intensive industrial agriculture and tourism and generally poor working conditions for agricultural workers according to several of the local actors who were interviewed are “out of control” since the county is not socially or institutionally equipped to handle the current level of incoming demands Examples of the county's lack of readiness include the national government's dearth of assistance institutional inefficiencies including a lack of oversight or legislative measures to prevent corruption and the ambiguous actions of temporary employment agencies Participants also mentioned that there is no real possibility for integration as most of the people working in agricultural enterprises are temporary labour and tend not to settle in the territory non-integrated migrants are constantly replacing integrated ones it is imperative to intensify efforts to settle migrants there is a need to address the rise in rents and other basic costs brought on by a perverse “business model” that takes advantage of immigrants by overcharging them for housing in addition to their entry into Portugal This new “market” is causing homes and even commercial facilities to be diverted to accommodate migrants Other weaknesses mentioned were the lack of support and insufficient mechanisms to access and control land and resources for small-scale and/ or traditional producers The continued disinvestment in local services/ infrastructures and the monopolisation of investment for transnational agribusinesses have established a trend of privatisation and mismanagement of natural resources These power asymmetries have created a lack of long-term vision thus generating a loss of collective mechanisms weakening or eliminating the democratic control of producers and other food actors over their food systems—i.e. their food sovereignty—and increasing land abandonment In terms of the agro-territory's opportunities • Climate dimension: Climate change can be considered an opportunity to foster improved and healthier relations with food production such as developing strategies for rain-fed agriculture or experimenting with desalination and taking advantage of Odemira's two production seasons • Environmental dimension: Participants identified three groups of opportunities independent research on soil and marine life investing in and developing social technology opportunities empowering and modernising small/traditional farms to realise new production models based on dialogue and cooperation); (ii) three R's—recovery reconversion of the eucalyptus monocultures into biodiverse forests recovery of water lines); and (iii) conservation (e.g. • Socio-economic dimension: Participants identified opportunities for fostering a more inclusive agricultural systems can horizontally produce wellbeing In order to democratise local food systems such as funding for rural regeneration projects support for smallholder traditional as well as sustainable farmers or implementing community-supported agriculture it was suggested that local producers needed to feel more empowered especially those who wanted to produce in a more sustainable way This could be achieved by promoting alternative education that combines traditional and contemporary knowledge of food systems such as traditional seed preserving methods and decentralised on-farm solar energy generation this would entail engaging in dialogue with the different players in the food chain including multinational corporations and civil society organisations such as a mandatory fund for dismantling intensive farming operations in the case of bankruptcy including the plastic greenhouse structures the prospect of sustainable tourism was discussed such as that proposed by the regional community-based initiative “Rota Vicentina” The major threats identified by the workshop participants and interviewees related mainly to socio-economic they pointed out threats related to neoliberal economic globalisation lack of protection mechanisms for and marginalisation of small-scale farmers and other traditional producers and the erosion of traditional knowledge and practices The latter is an indication of how a market paradigm that favours monocultures and gas and oil exploration has transformed society The workshop participants further identified the following threats as being extremely problematic: the dominance of eucalyptus an invasive but lucrative tree species; the exclusion of small-scale farmers from water irrigation systems; the danger of plastic contamination; and the loss of fertile soil The identification of weaknesses and threats supported the next step in the exercise where participants were asked to identify and then rank the principal problems in Odemira's food and agricultural systems according to their perspective This resulted in the following ordinal list: Dominant neoliberal/capitalist political vision Lack of articulation between small farming Planned disarticulation between policy and territory Non-recognition of the social and ecological functions of the earth and nature common goods transformed into merchandise (water Collusion with agribusiness and corruption by local authorities This prioritisation is in line with the conclusions of the baseline study presented in Section 3.1 In closing, participants were asked to delve deeper into the top three problems, pointing out what, in their view, were the major causes and consequences for each of these. These so-called problem trees are presented in Figures 4–6 and mirror the conclusions of the SWOT analysis as well as the baseline analysis of Odemira Problem tree 1—Dominant neoliberal/capitalist political vision Problem tree 2—Lack of articulation between small farming and support institutions Problem tree 3—Planned disarticulation between policy and territory A central idea that emerged from the workshop was that the region's recent transformation could be attributed to its increasing specialisation in export cash crops implemented within a large-scale intensive industrialised monoculture approach which is supported by subsidies and dominates the use of resources in the region small-scale farmers experience a lack of technical support and bureaucratic obstacles to getting their products to market and are excluded from democratic participation in the discussion of the territory's governance whether local associations or local politicians also lack the democratic and legal mechanisms to invert the tendencies in their territory The relatively rapid growth of the agro-industry has had severe socio-economic and environmental consequences among them the uncontrolled flux of migrants who live in less than optimum conditions the upward pressure on housing and other prices and a significant decrease in biodiversity These dynamics have resulted in a feeling of growing social injustice and growing inequality with wealth concentrated primarily in those benefiting from the new market model further deepening a sense of discouragement and of a lack of future The agro-territory of Odemira is affected by stressors from climate change as well as the consequences of political abandonment and power imbalances as discussed throughout this paper (lack of infrastructures the dominance of large-scale monoculture development inadequate democratic mechanisms such as the lack of inclusion of residents in land and water management) we argue that Odemira represents the contemporary clash of agricultural models in Europe as evidenced by the tensions listed below: • The marginalisation of small-scale family farmers who are increasingly facing disempowerment and even extinction • Heavy investment and political support for large-scale hyper-intensive agrarian projects to the detriment of small-scale as well as sustainable farming systems • Upward pressure on rents and other prices • De-development in light industry and services • Conflicts over land and water management The combination of these multiple stressors and tensions results in what we have termed “depressed and contested” agro-territories where we find not only socio-economic and ecological distress but also political conflict over scarce resources resulting in disempowerment and diminished food sovereignty of rural communities This study found that farming practices trumped farming conditions farmers in the intermediary and interior zones had very similar and reasonably good scores on most criteria with a slight advantage for intermediary zone farmers despite their superior edaphoclimatic and infrastructural conditions scored lower on almost all the 10 sustainability criteria than farmers in the interior and intermediary zone mostly due to their choice of production system: intensive with high external Although farmers in the interior were generally poorer and had worse working conditions (suffering the highest water stress) their isolation favoured the generation of inputs on the farm and a higher range of diversity of animals and better at recycling nutrients and creating synergies within their production system Proto-agroecological farms were shown to hold the highest scores overall Even though these production systems would benefit from better integration of animals and wider crop diversity these farmers are nevertheless the most consistent and likely to achieve a successful and multi-dimensional transition towards socially and ecologically sustainable farming systems The farmers in these production systems tend to be younger (often neo-agrarians have access to knowledge-sharing mechanisms favour direct relations with their customers and have better seeds and breeds management choosing climate-resistant varieties that support land regeneration These farmers were the most empowered of the non-industrial typologies Their capacity to network and defend their democratic rights gives them an advantage over the traditional farmers their often-innovative farming practices (e.g. market-garden) constitute a model to replicate to build resilient This typology shows the most promise of championing food sovereignty in depressed and contested agro-territories Traditional farmers showed a strong identification with the rural identity and the land and most had not forgotten (although not always applied) sound ancestral practices these farmers were the most fragile: in general lacked integration in organised networks (often not by choice but for lack of initiatives in their area) and were subject to more precarious land ownership situations Since enhancing the welfare of traditional farmers who make up the majority of farmers in the region will typically also enhance the welfare of the rural people any interventions in Odemira's food and farming systems must take these actors into consideration it is crucial that steps be taken to supervise the working and living conditions of migrant workers in the berry industry as well as reinforce infrastructures and institutions since these workers currently are overtaking the population of coastal towns in numbers The results of this collective assessment and reflection with key food actors in Odemira underscore the asymmetries that result from divergent visions for Odemira's agri-food future: one that supports and modernises small-scale and traditional farming within healthy collectively managed agroecosystems and another that sustains the expansion of intensive industrial agriculture Food actors in this study strongly favour the empowerment of actors left behind in the industrialisation of Odemira's food and farming systems the fusion of ancestral and modern practices and alternative economic arrangements that favour smallholder farmers They see a need for an ecological as well as democratic systems change from reconnecting with nature and respecting the limits imposed by the local realities to exploring further sustainable development mechanisms based on human rights protection Food sovereignty is the best paradigm to help realise these democratic attributes: by placing food system governance with those actors that not only benefit most from them but are also the first to suffer the consequences from their mismanagement The results show that Odemira's principal actors favour a different model of development They believe such an economic model produces more widespread benefits A more diverse food and farming system would spawn a wider variety of businesses and services both at the input as well as the output level rather than the current industrialised system which operates entirely independently from the agro-territory concentrating wealth at the level of capital-holders while leaving the territory to deal with the many externalities The present study focused on the plight of depressed and contested agro-territories in Europe using the example of the region of Odemira in Southwest Portugal We defined depressed and contested territories as areas that: suffer from pervasive socio-economic and ecological distress due to factors such as climate change and over-development followed by de-development and political abandonment; simultaneously are the object of competing developmental and market models In answer to the study's research questions the results firstly established Odemira's main challenges and its status as a depressed and contested territory Odemira is particularly impacted by climate change the territory has little to no resilience to mitigate these effects due to decades of political marginalisation that caused disinvestment in crucial infrastructures and other services sectors is being snatched up by agribusinesses operating in a hyper-industrialised model of farming These activities are causing additional stress on common resources such as soil but also the fragile infrastructures of the region the analysis revealed that the primary sources of conflict in Odemira are the rapidly expanding hyper-industrialised farming ventures This politically motivated large-scale industrial agriculture development in combination with the persistent underinvestment in the services and technologies connected to smallholder and sustainable farming are the primary cause of the deterioration of the socio-ecological and socio-economic circumstances in the agro-territory and sustainable farmers are increasingly being cut off from access to markets essential resources like water and technical and institutional support having no democratic or legal mechanisms at their disposal to halt this assault their financial returns are evaporating quickly and dissatisfaction with local and national authorities when we interacted with traditional farmers Other local food actors complained that they felt their communities were being abandoned and vital rural infrastructures neglected Sustainable farmers claimed they received little or no recognition for the ecosystem services their production systems provide the study collectively diagnosed the main factors feeding into and aggravating the agro-territory's challenges and tensions • The political support for a neoliberal capitalist vision for agriculture placing it on a trajectory of hyper-industrialisation and hyper-specialisation aimed at the global markets • The parallel marginalisation and abandonment of small-scale farmers whether traditional or proto-agroecological leaving them out of decision-making and isolated from essential support structures (e.g. local development associations and irrigation sources) There are currently no democratic or legal mechanisms for these actors to influence decision-making on natural and institutional resources • The disassociation of national agricultural policies from the territory's actual needs and possibilities particularly the inability to regulate savage farming practices stop the privatisation of common resources No political solution has been proposed for Odemira's predicament despite international commitments (e.g. mainly the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity strategies the Eco-schemes under the new Common Agricultural Policy all of which require translation into national strategies and law It is likely that Odemira will be unable to fulfil the objectives of SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) particularly when it comes to doubling the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers until 2030 guaranteeing secure and equal access to land and other necessary inputs (target Section 2.3); and fostering sustainable food production systems through resilient agricultural practices (target Section 2.4) the study showed that numerous opportunities exist to invert Odemira's current trend provided investment and subsidies are diverted from hyper-intensive farming practices to smallholder With the proper support and a balanced blend of ancestral knowledge with modern regenerative techniques the latter presents the best odds of reviving Odemira's communities Odemira's plight as a depressed and contested agro-territory stems mainly from severe deficiencies in food democracy and food sovereignty through the imposition of a dominant neoliberal market model mainly traditional but also proto-agroecological farmers as well as the growing group of migrant workers from deciding on the model they desire for Odemira's food future This study asserts that for these groups to regain democratic control over food and natural resources is a precondition to attaining the sustainable development sought after by the EU including the fulfilment of SDG 2 and the Farm to Fork Strategy Due to the contributions of local food system actors this study's methodological approach is particularly adequate for the setting of multiply stressed agro-territories being flexible enough to incorporate local specificities It is suitable for simultaneously tackling structural injustice and agricultural (un)sustainability within the framework of agroecology and food democracy it places the more vulnerable actors on centre stage and is specifically adapted to people with little formal education it proves to be robust in assessing the performance of agricultural systems across multiple dimensions combined with collective reflection exercises The insights provided by this research can assist other European agro-territories in dealing with the ecological and democratic tensions that derive from a focus on growth and upscaling through industrialisation rather than food sovereignty and the health and justice of local food systems It becomes clear from this study that the “business as usual” approach in food and farming will aggravate the fate of depressed agro-territories which will experience increasing pollution land abandonment due to ageing and lack of opportunities for smallholder farmers and the rapid deterioration of agro-ecosystems Odemira's predicament as the epitome of the clash of agricultural models in Europe could serve as a baseline for other studies where disputes over land and the choice of agricultural knowledge and practices are being discussed The ways forward proposed by the Odemira agro-territory's local food actors are anchored in the joint frameworks of agroecology and food democracy such as the regeneration of agroecosystems implementation of policies of inclusion and political participation in decision-making on crucial and the maximisation of wellbeing of the weakest elements in rural communities their proposals could serve as a model for transitioning to a sustainable and just development of the agri-food sector The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors Ethical review and approval was not required for the study on human participants in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements The patients/participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study LH and KS: writing original draft Sections 1 All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version LH received support for her post-doc research from the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) under the Contract No KS received support for her PhD work from the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) under the Contract No The authors wish to thank Dario Lucantoni from FAO for welcoming us into the community of researchers and practitioners who are testing TAPE around the world and for his kind support in helping us navigate the intricacies of the tool We are also grateful to Rita Queiroga-Bento and Rita Magalhães for their joyful contribution to the implementation of this research The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher Adaptation to climate change at local level in Europe: an overview AHSA (2022). 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This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited in accordance with accepted academic practice distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms *Correspondence: Lanka Horstink, bGFua2EuaG9yc3RpbmtAaWNzLnVsaXNib2EucHQ= †These authors share first authorship Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher 94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or goodLearn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish Read today's Portuguese stories delivered to your email A new four-star hotel focused on sustainable and responsible tourism is planned to be constructed in the municipality of Odemira Hotel dos Aivados – Aldeia do Silêncio the project will include 22 apartments and 16 houses According to the Environmental Impact Study (EIA) reviewed by Lusa News agency the proposed hotel will feature 22 apartments in which the investment value remains undisclosed will also include 16 private swimming pools The promoters describe the hotel as part of a regenerative tourism initiative designed to balance tourism with available natural resources “This hotel is developed as a regenerative tourism project to restore the balance between tourist activity and the availability of resources” The EIA also outlines the goal of aligning tourism with the area’s current agro-forestry activities particularly cork oak forests and extensive livestock farming includes enhancing the region’s natural habitats and educating future generations about environmental stewardship Among the project’s goals is the integration of a water recovery system that reclaims 85 percent of the consumed water A sanctuary for pollinators and a “Forest Club” for environmental education are also planned the promoters are also looking to create the ‘Vicentina Foundation’ a non-profit aimed at improving the natural conditions of Costa Vicentina and Southwest Alentejo We appreciate that not everyone can afford to pay for our services but if you are able to we ask you to support The Portugal News by making a contribution – no matter how small You can change how much you give or cancel your contributions at any time Send us your comments or opinion on this article Reaching over 400,000 people a week with news about Portugal This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Located in Quinta da Estrela, which occupies a valley in Odemira, a landscape significantly altered in recent decades in Portugal, the Portuguese architectural studio ARDE Arquitetura + Design designed the renovation of an existing isolated building with structural problems due to earthworks previously carried out in the nearby area The studio's proposal adapts the pottery program to the building without altering the existing construction and creates an adjacent volume for the location of kilns and technical areas. ARDE Arquitetura + Design brilliantly constructs a new environment in an empty creating an extension of the existing construction entirely of solid as a buttress that closes the wound of the damaged wall of the house linking the new construction method with the potter's craftsmanship achieving that the complex is endowed with an industrial character that gives prominence to brick and clay which are a tribute to the adjacent hillside The project improves the relationship of the existing building with its surroundings while reorganizing the landscape along with the main entrance integrating two ramps creates a softer connection between the building the nearby environment and Quinta da Estrela Olaria Municipal by ARDE Arquitetura + Design Project description by ARDE Arquitetura + Design The project is located in Quinta da Estrela which occupies a valley in Odemira a landscape significantly altered over the last three decades The slope surrounding the Quinta da Estrela house was removed to make way for a parking lot isolating the building and causing structural issues due to the excavation The intervention and rehabilitation proposal adapts the pottery program to the building without altering the existing construction and creates an adjacent volume for the location of kilns and technical areas The rehabilitated areas of the existing building include a store The proposed expansion serves as a buttress to the damaged wall of the house It is entirely made of handmade solid brick aligning the new construction method with the craftsmanship of the potter The simple form of the expansion makes the brick and the clay the protagonist of this new construction giving it an industrial character while linking the material to the earth as a memorial to the excavated hillside To enhance the building's relationship with its surroundings the landscape next to the main entrance was redesigned and two ramps were integrated to create a smoother connection between the building ARDE Arquitectura+Design. Lead Architect.- Daniel Pinho Inspection.- Rui Graça e Vitor Afonso.Engineering.- Paulo Ferreira.Landscape.- Daniel Pinho.Light Design: Claudio Espirito Santo.Fluids Engineering.- Paulo Ferreira.Thermal Engineering.- Miguel Ferreira - certiterm.Visual identity.- Daniel Pinho Solid artisanal brick.- Rustic tijolo factory.Exterior openings in solid wood.- Maciça.Microcement.- Richimi.Wall equipment.- Berker.Pavidren and Pavistab.- Globalpav.Hardware.- JNF Ivo Tavares Studio. graduated from the Autonomous University of Lisbon in 2006 He founded his studio ARDE Arquitetura + Design in 2010 after working with Inês Lobo and Samuel Torres de Carvalho Since then he has developed projects of the most varied scales from small private buildings to large public buildings Archive Art Farm workers from south Asia describe exploitative conditions at the heart of Europe’s soft fruits industry he began to worry he had made a terrible mistake could find was on one of the country’s berry farms in Odemira Earning less than the legal minimum wage to work 16-hour days in 40C heat But quitting could jeopardise his residency application – and that’s a risk he cannot afford to take Sagar is one of more than 10,000 young men and women who have left their home countries to find work in Portugal’s £200m berry industry picking fruit that will be sold in supermarkets across Europe.They are drawn to Portugal and the heart of Europe’s soft fruits industry by the dream of what many refer to as a “raspberry passport” and your papers are connected with your taxes he will be legally entitled to a Portuguese passport enabling him to live and work freely across the EU The desperation for a passport leaves thousands of foreign workers in conditions akin to labour bondage specialising in Nepali migration to Portugal not only by the legal procedures but also the loans they got to come here and the money they have to pay to the people who brought them,” she says “It keeps them in this cycle of exploitation.” Berry pickers interviewed by the Guardian describe paying smugglers up to €18,000 (£15,000) to facilitate their entry into the EU took a precarious route across Serbia that saw him wading through rivers up to his neck “I didn’t know if I would die on the way,” he says “I don’t know anybody here who cares for me,” Rahul says and his parents sold their home to cover the rest of the costs It’s your life-changerSagarHow long the process will take him is impossible to predict one in four were still awaiting temporary residency despite some filing their initial requests in early 2019 One 25-year-old woman says she filed her residency application to Portugal’s foreigners and borders service in 2019 but was told in June that her application no longer existed She has had to postpone her wedding in India twice “For three years [my fiance] has been waiting for me for everything … but everything is spoiled.” Last year, the Portuguese government confirmed plans to shutter the service but when this will happen remains uncertain “The concern is that a large number of migrants may be stuck in a limbo until the new service starts working,” says the high commissioner for migration the berry pickers worry the smallest misstep could threaten their futures “We can’t complain,” says one man from India who says he sometimes works for up to 11 hours a day with less than an hour’s break Berry pickers wait for their bus to work in the early hours of Saturday morning. (None of the workers photographed here were interviewed.) Photograph: Francesco Brembati/The GuardianSintab has only managed to unionise 12 migrant workers in the region “The rest of them were afraid to talk to us and then suffer reprisals,” says a former union employee a group of berry pickers in Odemira staged a protest about working conditions and lost their jobs keep on doing the work and following the others and the same pattern [of exploitation] keeps going on.” Fearful that their employers are watching their comings and goings interviews with the Guardian take place after dark as workers scout the streets to make sure nobody can see who is entering their homes they reveal bare mattresses on kitchen floors and bunks in draughty garages temperatures at night can drop to sub-zero degrees One worker says his bunk bed is infested with fleas Others sleep in converted shipping containers and pre-fabricated dormitories on the farms One young woman from Nepal shares a room with up to 10 others metres from her employer’s office on a farm she doesn’t leave the property for weeks at a time “They have almost no access to the outside world while they’re there,” says Aashima Budal a PhD candidate at the University of Stavanger “They often compare themselves to animals.” footage shows several officers forcing one young man to inhale a breathalyser filled with pepper gas Portugal’s national guard told the Guardian it has a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination and that personnel involved in the incidents filmed in 2018 and 2019 have been suspended from duty during ongoing disciplinary proceedings. It has also organised awareness-raising training on human rights issues, including racism. The main public health centre in Odemira is also struggling to keep up with the growing population, says one senior employee, claiming language barriers and a lack of resources compromises the standard of services they’re able to provide to those working on the berry farms. “If you ask me … Is the care being given in an adequate manner [to the workers]? No.” Read moreScared that any medical complaints could also affect their employability the berry pickers say they often avoid seeking treatment for pre-existing conditions and injuries suffered at work they will ask me so many questions,” says one man Everyone in Portugal has the right to healthcare says a spokesperson for the department of health adding that the Odemira health centre has a 24/7 emergency unit and an interpreter available once a week The Portuguese foreigners and borders service told the Guardian it was monitoring the situation in Odemira and that improving public service and speeding up the residency process are priority issues life in Portugal has become an endurance exercise After his seventh hour in the berry fields his thoughts shift to home – and whether he will ever be able to afford the 8,000 km (5,000 mile) journey back to Nepal And something will change after that … I will leave this place and go somewhere else and start a new life.” * Names have been changed to protect identity has today expressed “deep consternation” over the death of the Odemira volunteer firefighter sending condolences to the family and his corporation “I received with deep consternation the news of the death of firefighter Dinis Conceição who was on duty at the Odemira Volunteer Firefighters Association I leave my condolences and solidarity with the family and the entire corporation” The message was published on the head of government's account on the social network X Recebi com profunda consternação a notícia da morte do bombeiro Dinis Conceição que se encontrava ao serviço da Associação Humanitária de Bombeiros Voluntários de Odemira Deixo as minhas condolências e solidariedade à família e a toda a corporação The firefighter from the Odemira corporation died today following injuries caused by the crash of a firefighting vehicle on Wednesday the firefighter was part of the Odemira corporation “for around 20 years” and was part of one of Odemira's Permanent Intervention Teams (EIP) was called to intervene “in an authorized fire” in Saboia explained the president of the humanitarian association “They had done [the work] and were returning home” when the firefighting vehicle crashed the president of the Humanitarian Association of Volunteer Firefighters of Odemira This accident resulted in three other serious injuries one of which was transported to Santa Maria Hospital while the other two were taken to Portimão Hospital António Camilo stated that the firefighter who is at Santa Maria Hospital despite being “relatively better” on Thursday One of the firefighters transported to the Portimão Hospital “was operated on yesterday [Thursday] afternoon for a femur fracture” and the other firefighter where he underwent exams and ended up being discharged “late afternoon” on Thursday The firefighter who had been transferred to Beja Hospital with “a bruise on his head and a deep cut on his scalp” also “came home yesterday [Thursday] in the late afternoon” Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Wildfire that erupted in Odemira on Saturday has scorched thousands of hectares and forced evacuation of 1,400 people Nearly 1,000 firefighters in Portugal have been scrambling to contain a wildfire that has raged for four days and forced the evacuation of about 1,400 people as it spreads towards the Algarve one of the country’s top tourist destinations according to the state meteorological agency Aemet The blaze in Portugal erupted in the southern municipality of Odemira on Saturday Fuelled by high temperatures and strong winds the wildfire swiftly rampaged across more than 7,000 hectares (17,300 acres) filled with highly flammable pine and eucalyptus trees Officials said they had evacuated 20 villages four tourist accommodations and a camping site as a precautionary measure also forced the temporary closure of several roads the commander of the emergency and civil protection authority said there was a “lot of work” ahead for firefighters “It is a worrying situation,” added Ribeiro pointing to the two active fronts of the fire One front is heading in the direction of Monchique a lush mountainous area in the Algarve countryside whose thermal springs have long been a draw for tourists about 400 people had been allowed to return to their homes said André Fernandes of Portugal’s emergency and civil protection authority Bulldozers were being used to build fire breaks and halt the wildfire’s expansion noting that the Odemira blaze continued to be the most concerning of several fires raging across the country Scientists say heatwaves are becoming more frequent, intense and spread out across seasons due to climate change. In Portugal, the IPMA weather agency has put six districts in the country, including the capital, Lisbon, on red alert for extreme heat until midnight. Read moreOne day earlier the central Portuguese city of Santarém reportedly recorded a temperature of 46.4C the highest recorded temperature so far this year where firefighters continue to battle a wildfire that has scorched about 7,000 hectares temperatures were forecast to climb as high as 41C Authorities have declared more than 120 municipalities across Portugal at maximum risk of wildfires “The weather conditions we are going to experience in the coming days means any small occurrence [of fire] could become a big one,” Patrícia Gaspar your new go-to podcast to spice up your weekday mornings with relevant news and behind-the-scenes from Brussels and beyond From the economy to the climate and the EU's role in world affairs this talk show sheds light on European affairs and the issues that impact on our daily lives as Europeans Tune in to understand the ins and outs of European politics Dare to imagine the future with business and tech visionaries Deep dive conversations with business leaders Euronews Tech Talks goes beyond discussions to explore the impact of new technologies on our lives the podcast provides valuable insights into the intersection of technology and society Europe's water is under increasing pressure floods are taking their toll on our drinking water Join us on a journey around Europe to see why protecting ecosystems matters and to discover some of the best water solutions an animated explainer series and live debate - find out why Water Matters We give you the latest climate facts from the world’s leading source analyse the trends and explain how our planet is changing We meet the experts on the front line of climate change who explore new strategies to mitigate and adapt Hundreds of firefighters are battling to contain wildfires which have engulfed thousands of hectares More than 1,400 people were evacuated as nearly 1,000 firefighters tackled a fire near the southern town of Odemira At least nine firefighters have been injured so far tackling the fires The blaze began on Saturday and was driven south towards the Algarve A total of 19 villages have so far been evacuated other major fires forced the closure of several stretches of motorway Areas affected included parts of the A1 between Lisbon and Porto Temperatures have been rising and are expected to exceed 40C across much of the Iberian peninsula this week Civil protection officials said that work carried out overnight allowed for "stabilisation of the perimeter of the fire” Neighbouring Spain is experiencing its third heat wave this summer and has been battling a number of wildfires One of the regions currently affected by the fires is Extremadura on the Mediterranean coast on the border with France the fire brigade announced on Monday morning that it had "brought under control" a fire that broke out on Friday In Andalusia one affected some 450 hectares in the province of Huelva on Saturday and Sunday which broke out less than 10 kilometres from the city of Cadiz on Sunday afternoon engulfed a pine forest adjacent to the town of Puerto Real causing a temporary closure of the motorway leading to Cadiz Exclusive: Workers in Portugal picking berries ending up on the shelves of Marks & Spencer Waitrose and Tesco allege exploitative conditions for fear of retribution from their employers workers claimed the hours listed on their payslips were often fewer than the hours they had actually worked In two visits between September and November 2021, the Guardian spoke with more than 40 men and women from India and Nepal, employed either directly or through intermediary agencies, on farms across Odemira, a region to the south of Portugal that bustles with south Asian restaurants and international money transfer services Driscoll’s berries are marketed to UK supermarkets by Berry Gardens Tesco and M&S are members of the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) which stipulates that workers should be paid wages and benefits that meet national legal standards or industry benchmark standards The long hours and below legal minimum wages appear to breach worker welfare standards of UK supermarkets [None of the workers photographed here were interviewed].The ETI base code also states that workers should not work more than 60 hours in any seven-day period except where this is allowed by national law and collective agreements freely negotiated with workers’ organisations representing a significant portion of the workforce Sign up for a different view with our Global Dispatch newsletter – a roundup of our top stories from around the world and thoughts from our team on key development and human rights issues the richness of the topography lies in it’s contained flatness a feature that the portuguese architect seeks to capture with the stark white planes of the building the L-shaped plan serves to maximize the building’s exposure to the south-light and sun-soaked mountainous views a ‘privileged contemplation of the landscape’ by carefully developing the volumes of space according site and program these planar volumes follow the subtle lines in the landscape while creating their own complexity with panoramic cut outs approach to the house, greeted by the swimming pool image © joao morgado | all images courtesy of vitor vilhena the cut outs dot the landscape with warm yellow squares image © joao morgado the entry is carefully carved into the plane keeping with the overall language of the built form image © joao morgado situated on a sloping site that mimics the lines on the landscape image © joao morgado solid and void are balanced according to program and ideal views of the site image © joao morgado a total respect for the site’s visual resources was the objective of the project image © joao morgado traditional tile floors keep the house cool in the summer image © joao morgado framed views of the landscape image © joao morgado AXOR presents three bathroom concepts that are not merely places of function but destinations in themselves — sanctuaries of style The fire that broke out on Saturday in the Alentejo municipality of Odemira and entered the municipalities of Monchique and Aljezur (Faro) still has almost 1,000 personnel and six air assets on the scene even though it has been under control since Wednesday At 10:20 am, there were 989 operational personnel on the ground, supported by 335 vehicles and six air assets, according to information published on the website of the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection (ANEPC) which was considered under control at 10:15 am on Wednesday meaning that firefighters should remain on the ground in the coming days The southern front of the fire touches the Algarve municipalities of Monchique and Aljezur (Faro district) having reached the center of the village of Odeceixe The area burned by this fire covers around 8,400 hectares and has a perimeter of 50 kilometres 42 people have been assisted by medical teams on site and nine have been transported to hospital units The flames also destroyed a rural tourism unit with the owners complaining about the lack of assistance from firefighters Portugal’s Alentejo region is lined with glorious beaches – but not many people seem to know about them It’s 7pm on a balmy Saturday night in June, and I have just ordered my first Sagres beer in I Cervejaria one of the prettiest villages on Portugal’s south-west coast and staying in B&Bs where we are the only guests when Portuguese holidaymakers descend on the Alentejo coast the trickle of diners who come to feast on fantastically fresh seafood reflects the general pace of life in the Alentejo: sleepy One of the poorest, least-developed, least-populated regions in western Europe, the Alentejo has been dubbed both the Provence and the Tuscany of Portugal. Neither is accurate. Its scenery is not as pretty and, apart from in the capital Evora wildflower meadows and tiny white-washed villages are more subtle than in France or Italy’s poster regions but day after day we had spectacular beaches to ourselves The lack of awareness is partly a matter of accessibility (these beaches are a good two hours’ drive from either Faro or Lisbon airports) and partly to do with a lack of beachside accommodation independent guesthouses in this area (see below) but they are hidden in valleys or at the end of dirt tracks Our base was Herdade da Nespereira a beautiful 600-acre estate of uncultivated land covered in rock-rose eucalyptus and wild flowers 13km inland from Zambujeira was once home to the miller who tended the now-restored watermill next to it If Julian Assange ever leaves the Ecuadorian embassy in London I suggest he hotfoots it to an Alentejo hideaway The view from Azenha one of four self-catering houses at Herdade da Nespereira Photograph: PR Photograph: PRStepping out of the house in the morning to greet our neighbours – wild horses on one side donkeys on the other – with nothing but birdsong filling the air I felt a sense of adventure you normally only get with wild camping they feel a little anxious wondering what they are going to do the whole time,” Sarah Gredley “But it doesn’t usually take them long to realise that the whole point of being here is to slow down Herdade da Nespereira windmill house Photograph: PR Photograph: PRWe followed her advice walking down to the stream in search of terrapins and otters their branches hairy with lichen like the ancient trees of a fairytale forest for panoramic views across the estate and beyond we were always drawn back to the coast – the gentle sands and shallow bay of Farol beach close to Vila Nova de Milfontes the rock pools of Almograve or the cove at Carvalhal knowing that at every one there would be a cabinet full of fresh seafood to choose from – bass A kilometre or so from I Cervejaria, on Zambujeira’s idyllic natural harbour is O Sacas originally built to feed the fishermen but now popular with everyone After scarfing platefuls of seafood on the terrace we wandered down to the harbour where two fishermen were setting out by boat across the clear turquoise water to collect goose barnacles the place was deserted – just another empty beauty spot where I wondered for the hundredth time that week how this pristine stretch of coast has remained so undiscovered 100km of the Alentejo coast is natural park so there are no hotels directly on the beach The accommodation below is within easy reach of the coast by car (a car is essential in this region Pont’a Pé (+351 282 998 104, pontape.pt) restaurant next to the river in the historic part of Aljezur serves some of the best traditional dishes the owner’s brother owns the bar next door Dina’s tip: Café Central (+351 282 947 419) in the village of Brejão is my favourite restaurant in the area mainly grilled fish and seafood cooked to perfection Sara’s tip: The Historical Way is the romantic side of the Rota Vicentina as opposed to the dramatic scenery of the Fisherman’s trail The section between Odeceixe and São Teotonio then through eucalyptus forest – take a picnic Monica’s tip: Choupana (+351 283 996 643) is a very simple wooden restaurant directly on the beach in Vila Nova de Milfontes Not many people go there – but we often go as a family and love it It’s a great spot to end the day as the sun sets right in front of you An unpaved road running through fields of wheat and wild flowers brings you to Três Marias A passionate advocate for the area and a mine of information he helped set up the Rota Vincentina walking route (see below) including two family rooms with kitchenettes There’s no pool but the coast can be reached on the hotel’s free bikes Outside there’s a shaded chill-out area with cushions and a telescope (night skies are dazzling) and the fields are home to donkeys and an ostrich – a lone survivor from Balthasar’s former life as an ostrich farmer +351 965 666 231, casasbrancas.pt Balthasar’s tip: Herdade do Pessegueiro is a great riding school offering everything from a one-hour lesson to overnight trekking programmes In the low season they also offer rides along the beach The shallow Photograph: Isabel Choat Photograph: Isabel Choat/PRMost of the beaches along Portugal’s west coast are pounded relentlessly by Atlantic Ocean waves and the Altentejo is no exception so the gently sloping sands of Farol beach so parents of older kids could feasibly sit on the terrace with a beer as their children paddle in the shallows kids can also busy themselves searching for crabs under the rocks The broad expanse of Odeceixe Beach which has a river running across it Photograph: Valter Jacinto/Getty Images/Flickr Open Photograph: Valter Jacinto/Getty Images/Flickr OpenOdeceixe beach is breathtaking: a broad expanse of sand with a shallow river running through it (ideal for young children) The cherry on top of this natural gorgeousness is Bar da Praia a tiny space with just three or four tables inside and benches outside for taking in the view It’s laid-back enough for you to rock up with sandy feet sophisticated enough to serve good Portuguese wines in decent-size glasses and high-quality Spanish tapas the gobsmacking view… I didn’t want to leave with the same stonking view and a more extensive menu Don’t forget your bucket and net Photograph: Isabel Choat Photograph: Isabel Choat/PREvery child loves rockpooling and at low tide Almograve is a great place for hunting down crabs You’ll need to stay with younger children and keep a keen eye on older ones – the waves here are rough – but it’s a great spot to while away a couple of hours with a bucket and a net Carvalhal beach is reached by dirt track from Zambujeira do Mar Photograph: Henrique Feliciano Photography/Getty Images/Flickr Open Photograph: Henrique Feliciano Photography/Getty Images/Flickr OpenIn July and August Alteirinhos is the beach of choice for holidaying Lisboans who prefer its slightly more isolated location over the busier beach at Zambujeira It’s great if you want to feel part of the short-lived summer buzz There are no restaurants or kiosks at either beach so remember to take food and water with you three- and five-day courses starting at €50 in low season (equipment extra) starting in the town of Odemira and following the river as it narrows spotting numerous species of bird in the bankside reeds (three-five hours from €15pp Firefighters in Portugal are battling to contain wildfires engulfing thousands of hectares amid soaring temperatures Around 800 personnel attended to a fire near the southern town of Odemira overnight on Monday with more than 1,400 people having to evacuate At least nine firefighters have been injured tackling the fires Temperatures in excess of 40C (104F) are expected to hit much of the Iberian peninsula this week Three major fires that scorched hundreds of hectares in Spain over the weekend have been brought under control but weather alerts remain in place across much of the country The fire near Odemira began on Saturday and was driven south into the hilly interior of the Algarve It has so far destroyed some 6,700 hectares (16,600 acres) of land four tourist accommodations and a camping site have been evacuated who lives around 16km (10 miles) south of Odemira in São Teotónio knows how dangerous and fast-moving wildfires in Portugal’s countryside can be Last year he had just an hour’s notice to load up his car with some luggage and his dogs to escape a fire which burnt part of his house With the flames once again raging minutes from his home he told Radio 4’s World at One programme the fires sent “everybody in this area into a real panic” on Monday but that things had calmed “a little” on Tuesday “simply because the wind has dropped.” coming from the east… yesterday and that doubled the size of the fire in just a few hours,” he said “A lot of people were evacuated from their homes a few of the hotels here had to send guests elsewhere and we’ve had since yesterday more than 800 firefighters He said commercial eucalyptus and pine forests in the area have been engulfed there aren’t roads going through them so when the fires get into the valleys they burn fast and hard it’s a very dangerous thing to deal with “The firefighters really can only direct it try to push it to a place where there are not many trees and hope it naturally runs out of fuel.” other major fires prompted the closure of several stretches of motorway including parts of the A1 between Lisbon and Porto Sixteen water-bombing aircraft have been deployed to support firefighting efforts across the two areas Every inch in the Portuguese coast is under the environment ministry You can buy the land but you have to provide public access to the beaches